Regional airline makes redundancies in cost-cutting drive under new chief
executive as it returns to profit

Flybe, the Exeter-based regional airline, will cut 500 jobs as part of an extended cost-cutting operation under new chief executive Saad Hammad.

The news came as an earlier round of redundancies helped return the company to profit in the six months to October.

The new round of job cuts, which follows 300 announced in January, will save Flybe £7m this year and £26m next year, the company said. Mr Hammad also said that as a result, the number of routes Flybe operates will be reduced.

"Unfortunately there is a proposal for further redundancies," he said. "We will consult with the trade unions and employees to ensure that this is done fairly and delivers the right outcome for the business.

"We will make Flybe the best local airline in Europe. This is ambitious, but achievable provided that we can transform our cost base and efficiency now."

The recent round of job cuts showed signs of paying off, with the company making £13.8m in pre-tax profit in the half-year, against a £1.6m loss in the same period last year. Revenue rose 3pc to £351.1m.

Flybe said it saw a 5.6pc increase in passengers in the period to 4.3m, and the average revenue per scheduled seat had risen slightly to £50.35.